With The John Steel Singers having won Unearthed artist of the year in 2008 and releasing a fantastic debut album in 2010, Everything’s A Thread has been one of the most anticipated Australian releases of this year.
I first heard the band a few years ago when they supported Tame Impala at the Forum. Their playful, witty lyrics and energetic songs have grabbed me from the very beginning. I was instantly a fan.
On their second album they have ditched their ska-esque horn parts and opted for a few more spacey synths and wacky sounds. This approach, to be honest, is a real shame as the horns really added to the band’s sound and made them stand out from the crowd.
To me, Everything’s A Thread sounds a lot like a spacey psychedelic jam album. This is all well and good, but I can’t imagine the album would attract the same sort of crowd as Tangalooma did. Fans of Melbourne’s King Gizzard and the Lizard Wizard should enjoy this album, although it doesn’t get as weird and wonderful as Their Float Along – Fill Your Lungs. There are a lot of mesmerising grooves, which hint at a big krautrock influence (long, grooving bass and drum driven rock with hints of electronics and psychedelia that originated in Germany in the late 60’s & early 70’s). This creates a great rhythm backing throughout and is never a bad thing.
The two stand out tracks for me are Everything’s A Thread with it’s explosive guitars and The Marksman which is somewhat darker and more interesting in it’s vocal delivery.
Tracks Lambs and TGI Tuesdays are also fantastic with grooving bass lines and great hooks. These tracks are great to hear right at the end of an album as they give it a climactic ending.
While its disappointing that there’s no more brass, The John Steel Singers have done a great job on this album! It’s incredibly consistent and well produced. Perfect for a summer road-trip and it’ll surely make you want to jump around all over the place! (Although, I don’t recommend both these activities be enjoyed simultaneously).
